(June 30, 2001) Local governments in China are investing heavily in trophy construction projects while neglecting a basic need for environmental infrastructure such as wastewater treatment systems, a senior Chinese official said.

(Excerpt)

Beijing: Local governments in China are investing heavily in trophy construction projects while neglecting a basic need for environmental infrastructure such as wastewater treatment systems, a senior Chinese official said on Thursday. Qiu Baoxing, vice-minister for construction, reported that some 230 of the 600 or so Chinese cities surveyed by the government did not have adequate wastewater treatment networks. “This means polluted water in these cities is discharged directly [into waterways] causing tremendous harm to the environment,” he said. Mr Qiu’s remarks suggest local governments and developers around the country are overinvesting in showy real estate projects while ignoring rudimentary environmental requirements for densely populated cities.

Financial Times, June 30, 2001